Promoter defends pop band's brief show (From Oxford Mail)

Promoter defends pop band's brief show

11:14am Saturday 5th February 2011 in News By Tim Hobden

A promoter has hit back at accusations that boyband One Direction short-changed fans with a short performance at The Regal.

Some fans claimed the band played only four songs and were on stage for 20 minutes at the Wednesday night gig.

But Craig Pitson, director of Soundwave Live, said the event was always billed as 'One Direction Plus Support Acts and Live DJ’.

He said: “The support acts are there to create a show, otherwise it would literally be the headline performance and that, I agree, would be a complete waste of money and source of disappointment to those attending.

“We didn't just randomly throw support acts on stage, we carefully selected Oxford's finest up and coming talent.

“We take great pride in supporting and showcasing young artists from Oxford and we will continue to do so.”

Mr Pitson admitted the X-Factor stars were 20 minutes late taking the stage at the Cowley Road venue.

But he added: “The time, effort and work which goes into these shows is vast, and although we appreciate feedback from all attendees, the show at The Regal was one of the best atmospheres ever to hit Oxford.

“The amount of positive feedback we have received has been overwhelming, and we hope that people continue to enjoy Soundwave Live Events as much as 99 per cent of the audience did on Wednesday.”